Anjali Lal Gupta, an Associate professor at University of Hyderabad, who is also an independent journalist shares her top five reads
Wild by Cheryl Strayed
I love this memoir on self-discovery and healing. It is about how a young woman who hikes 1,100 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail to atone for a life of excesses. It is also about the deep bond between a mother and her daughter.
Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse
This book is a big favourite. The protagonist Siddhartha has reserves to glide through tough circumstances but he is looking for something deeper. Then he finds the ferryman. My lifelong desire has been to find the ferryman.
The Mill on the Floss by George Eliot
I had read this Victorian classic back in 1994 as it was part of our undergraduate syllabus. This is the book where I can totally relate to the protagonist. Maggie was a sensitive rebel, in search of a free community who would let her be.
I cried for three days after Maggie and her brother Tom died.
The Age of Kali by William Dalrymple
This hugely informative collection of essays is a result of Dalrymple’s travels over ten years. I found this book insightful and funny. Did you know that the priests at the famous Madurai temple remove Meenakshi’s big nose pin before they call it a night since the Goddess and her Lord would be at it and they’d not want any discomfort between them?
The Ramayana A Modern Translation by Ramesh Menon
As kids we saw the televised account many Sundays and thought we knew the story. Nope, that serial did nothing but kill imagination. I adore this book. There’s a chapter where Ram and Ravana look at each other for the first time. Please just read it!